Gaylord, Michigan
Tradition offers a welcoming, open layout inspired by golden-age architecture and enhanced by recent restoration. It’s the friendliest Treetops test and a must-play for the full Michigan-resort experience.
Check out the unique wooden tee markers and pennant flags—an intentional nod to golf’s early days you won’t find on the other Treetops layouts.
Rick Smith’s Tradition course is a tribute to the golden age of golf design, favoring strategic shotmaking and walkable routing over brute length. Its open corridors, restored after major tree removal, encourage creativity with both the ground and aerial game. Wide fairways framed by native grasses reflect the course’s playable intent, yet subtle elevation changes and classic green complexes keep even skilled players engaged. Wooden tee markers and pennant flags, along with restored sunlight and improved turf, create a setting that feels like a blend of early American golf and laid-back Michigan hospitality.
Rick Smith crafted the Tradition as his first solo vision—focusing on walkability, openness, and a classic feel inspired by early American courses.
This early par 5 lays out before you with a generous landing area and a sloping, reachable green. It's a prime scoring chance for aggressive players, but only if your second shot avoids trouble lurking along the approach. Judging the best line off the tee sets up a real go-for-it decision.
Favor the left side off the tee for an open look, laying up to your preferred wedge if you can’t carry the bunkers near the green.
Miss left on approach and deep rough or a tucked pin can punish bold plays.
Usually excellent bent grass on greens and fairways, with playably open turf post-restoration.
Standard resort pace—expect 4.5+ hours in peak season, especially with multiple groups walking.
Classic, welcoming Michigan resort; golf-trippy, not stuffy.
Standard resort: collared shirt and proper golf attire required.
Morning rounds can start brisk and get sunny; layers and rain gear recommended.
The course was designed for walking, making it a perfect opportunity to leave the cart behind if conditions allow.
If you’re traveling with buddies, stacked tee times help you avoid slowdowns from mixed resort groups.
Tradition Course opens as Rick Smith’s first original design at Treetops Resort.
Restoration clears over 800 trees, returning the open, walkable concept.
Tradition layout receives acclaim for improved conditions and sunlight after restoration.
Treetops Resort continues regional marketing of Tradition as a walkable, golden-age tribute course.
The Tradition’s tee markers, pins, and pennant flags were chosen to evoke golf’s early days, highlighting the course’s classic spirit and differentiating it from more modern resort designs. These little touches contribute to an atmosphere of tradition and intentional simplicity.
A powerful storm knocked down hundreds of mature trees, forcing the course to close for emergency restoration. Instead of replanting, the team removed over 800 trees, creating more open vistas, better turf health, and a nod to the course’s original links-influenced vision.
Unlike Treetops’ more severe, cart-oriented layouts, the Tradition was designed from the start so that golfers could easily walk—making it one of the most playable resort options in the region. The course’s gentle terrain and routing keep green-to-tee transitions short and make a relaxed stroll possible.
The course’s restoration removed over 800 trees, dramatically opening up views and turf health.
Tradition features five par 3s, unusual for a modern resort course.
Rick Smith considers Tradition his first pure solo design—and a tribute to classic golf idealism.
You’ll play with wooden tee markers and pennant flags, not the typical resort plastic or metal.
Offers a wilder, more dramatic challenge to complement Tradition’s playability.
Northern Michigan beauty and a shotmaker’s test just minutes from Treetops.
Scottish-links inspired and a local favorite for variety.
Big elevation and views, another top Michigan golf-trip staple.
Stay on-property at Treetops Resort for the full experience, or in downtown Gaylord for off-course dining and flexibility.
Courses with the most similar DNA profile — matched by deviation shape across all eight playing characteristics.
Why it matches: If Treetops Resort (Tradition Course) is your kind of course, Prouts Neck Country Club is worth a look because it moves through the round with the same walkable flow.
Why it matches: Continental Golf Club is a natural next stop after Treetops Resort (Tradition Course): it has a similarly satisfying rhythm on foot.
Why it matches: What links these two? Moves through the round with the same walkable flow — a familiar feeling, expressed in Beachwood Golf Club's own setting.
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